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Saturday, November 10, 2007

One Week Until the Great Los Angeles Walk!

Great Los Angeles Walk T-shirts are for sale! Several different T-shirt styles available, all with the cool logo designed by Maria. We're not making a dime off these things; the prices you see are exactly what Cafe Press charges. Check out our new Cafe Press store to order. Unfortunately, we won't get the shirts until after the walk... but you want some sort of conversation starter to brag how you hiked Pico, yes?

Now, the Walk FAQ:

1. WHEN/WHERE? Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007. Get to the Streamline Moderne-style historic Coca Cola Bottling Plant at the corner of Pico and Central. We leave at 9 a.m. sharp.

2. WHAT IF I CAN'T GET THAT FAR EAST? Just wait for us somewhere on Pico downtown. (Fashion district? Convention center) Still arrive there by 9, so you can join the crowd when we walk by.

3. HOW LONG IS THE HIKE? 15 miles. That's actually a mile shorter than last year's Great Wilshire Walk.

4. WHEN WILL WE GET TO THE END? If last year is any indication, around 5:30 p.m. or so. Depending on how often we break.

5. WHAT WILL WE DO ALONG THE WAY? Pulitzer Prize-winning food scribe Jonathan Gold has given us a list of must-eat Pico joints for starters, so we may hit a few of those. The L.A. Conservancy is (hopefully, still waiting to hear back) also providing us a list of Pico architecture we should take a look at. And if you're a writer, you can even picket as we walk past the Fox lot.

6. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE WALK IS DONE? We'll celebrate at Cha Cha Chicken, which is conveniently located at the very end of Pico in Santa Monica. It's BYOB, so we can even celebrate with booze. Up to you.

7. HOW DO I GET HOME? Ahh, the big question. We've arranged for a bus to take stranded walkers back downtown. But it's $300 -- and we need to hear from enough people to make it worthwhile (and make sense cost-wise). So far, we've only heard from around five people that they want to pitch in -- unfortunately, that's not enough. I figure we'd need at least 10 people (at $30 a pop) to make it reasonable. If you want to join in, email franklin_avenue@yahoo.com by Monday... the bus people have to know by Tuesday. If there's not enough takers, then everyone may have to figure out the return trip (MTA, I guess) on their own.

8. WHAT SHOULD I WEAR/BRING? Loose, comfy clothing. I'd wear shorts, a t-shirt and then bring a jacket -- it gets chilly in Santa Monica. Also, tennis shoes... sunglasses... a hat... sunscreen... and most importantly, a camera! We'll all be documenting it and posting pics later.

9. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? Why not? Last year, it was to mark my 10th anniversary in Los Angeles. But it was so much fun, and it was a chance to meet so many new people, that I wanted to make it an annual event. It's the Saturday before Thanksgiving as well, so somehow I don't feel as bad gorging on sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie a few days later. And hey, it'll be a cool conversation piece at your holiday party. "What the hell was I thinking, spending all day walking down Pico?!"